I know a no-picture post is ludicrous, but this one got eaten so fast I didn’t have time to snap it. Actually, that’s not true. We had friends over for a impromptu barbecue, and everyone was so full after dinner I left it a while to serve, until one unsubtle guest felt he had to ask ‘did the apple crumble get thrown out?’ I’m just not so rude or pretentious to take a photo of so simple a creation in the presence of others.

It is the perfect dessert to throw together when you don’t have much in the way of time or ingredients and you don’t want to put in much effort. The hazelnuts were a last-minute addition, but really made the flavour of the crumble. 

This works excellently with gluten free flour, and said grumbly guest said it was the best gf crumble he’d ever tasted.

Here we go:

Peel, core and slice about 6 apples (I have a machine that does this for me, so if this takes you a while, you’ll understand why it didn’t bother me that much in time-takingness)

Toss those in a pan with a dash of lemon juice, one teaspoon of cinnamon and a dob of butter. Cook on a medium heat for about 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tender.

For the crumble, take one cup each of plain flour, desiccated/shredded coconut and brown sugar. Mix together in a bowl, then add 125g melted butter and stir to combine. Chop 1/2 cup hazelnuts and mix those in as well. 

Place the apples in a hided casserole dish/brownie tin or similar, or individual ramekins if you’re feeling dainty. Scatter some raspberries over the top, and press in (I used frozen). Cover with the crumble and bake for 15 minutes on 180C

Enjoy with just a splash of thickened cream poured over, with whipped cream, ice cream, or whatever you feel like.

This recipe served 8.

Wait a second. I didn’t explain why this recipe is audacious. Is it really all that bold and out-there? Well, I would argue that it is. For me, at least. I have made apple crumble the same way so many times. I just use the same recipe as the base of my caramel slice. The addition of butter to the apples, the raspberries and especially those hazelnuts in the crumble made it that little bit different. I might go further, next time. I could add some nectarines, peaches or plums, or even some chilli powder to the crumble! Now that would be adventurous…